Keeping track of the number of loads carried by a hauling vehicle may be desirable for several reasons. For example, the number of loads carried by the vehicle may be considered when determining its value depreciation over time. The more loads it has carried, the more dumps it will have made, which may be an indication of the level of wear and tear on the dump mechanism, and thus may affect the resale value of the vehicle. Similarly, the number of loads may be monitored to assist in determining when scheduled maintenance may be appropriate. Some components may be serviced or replaced after a predetermined number of dump cycles. Also, counting the number of loads carried by a hauling vehicle may be used for billing purposes, particularly when one involved party is either paying or getting paid by the load, or by the amount of material hauled.
Historically, load counts have been kept by handwritten tally in log books or the like. However, this method can be unreliable due to honest mistake, or intentional “padding” of the load count (i.e., fraudulently recording more loads than were actually made).
Load counts have also been kept using dump body position sensors. Such sensors are often contact sensors that complete an electrical circuit when the dump body resides in a fully lowered position. When the dump body is raised, the sensor contact is broken and a dump cycle is recorded. Such a system can eliminate some mistakes in recordation. Nevertheless, this type of system may still be subject to “padding” because an operator need only raise the dump body by a small amount, such as one to two inches in order to record a fraudulent dump cycle.
Certain dump cycle counting systems have been proposed for automatically monitoring the dump cycles for a machine. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,263,039 to Ducharme (hereinafter “the '039 patent”) discloses a counting system that monitors the output of a load body position control device. The system of the '039 patent monitors electrical current indicative of the dumping of the machine's dump body. In one embodiment, the '039 patent monitors both initiation and cessation of the current and thus determines that a full dump cycle has been completed and only then does it record a dump cycle.
While the system of the '039 patent may be suitable in certain applications for automatically monitoring and counting the number of dump cycles for a machine, the system has several shortcomings. For example, because the system of the '039 patent relies on the measurement of a current level of an electrical signal to operate, the system must include one or more sensors for determining this current level. These sensors add complexity and cost to the system for the '039 patent. Further, the sensors may negatively impact the reliability of the system. In addition, the system of the '039 patent may not be easily retrofitted to a machine due to the addition of various sensors, wiring, etc. that must be installed.
The disclosed dump cycle counting and monitoring system is directed toward overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above.